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Social Security Disability Help from Attorney NoyesIn addition to helping those injured in car accidents, motorcycle crashes, workers' compensation claims and other personal injury matters, Matthew Noyes helps the disabled fight to get the SSD benefits from the Social Security Administration.

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

With summer around the corner, unfortunately, so are bicycle accidents.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 618 bicycle riders died and 52,000 pedalcyclists were injured in bike vs. car accidents in 2010. About 9,000 of the pedalcyclists who were injured were age 14 and younger. New research from the Boston Children's Hospital indicates there is a way to reduce these bike accident injuries.

According to the recent Boston Children's Hospital research, bicyclists who wear helmets have an 88 percent lower risk of brain injury. Also noted was that simply having bicycle helmet laws in place showed a 20 percent decrease in deaths and injuries for children younger than 16 who were in bicycle-car collisions. The research suggests that having these laws may influence parents to require their children wear helmets.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all cyclists wear helmets that fit properly for each ride, and supports legislation that requires all cyclists to wear helmets. Florida law requires any bicycle rider or passenger who is under 16 years of age to wear a bicycle helmet that is properly fitted and is fastened securely upon the passenger’s head by a strap and that meets the federal safety standard for bicycle helmets. A traffic ticket will be issued and the bicycle rider or passenger will be assessed a $15 fine.

Ride safely this summer and drivers, watch out for bicyclists. A few extra seconds of safety can save a child's life.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

It's that time of year--high school graduations. (Special congrats to my nephew, Joshua Noyes, graduating from Clearwater Central Catholic High School!! Also, congrats to his sisters [my nieces], Taylor and Jordan, graduating from St. Cecelia School). With this special time comes special dangers of car accidents for high schoolers and those on the road with high school drivers.

Not all graduation celebrations are associated with a higher chance for high schoolers to indulge in the consumption of alcoholic beverages. However, most celebrations can bring other distractions to graduating seniors as they drive -- friends in the car, text-messaging, thinking about graduation, etc. It is these distractions that could result in car accidents.

We cannot ignore the risk of alcohol at graduation parties. Alcohol is used more commonly by young people than any other drug. According to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, "Approximately one in four children younger than 18 years old in the United States are exposed to alcohol". Further, current alcohol use among high school students is greater than 40 percent with 26 percent of students reporting episodic heavy or binge drinking. As a result, the risks of a car accident involving a car full of graduating seniors are significantly increased related to alcohol use. Sadly, we read about at least one of these car accidents each year.

Here are some tips for seniors who plan on attending a graduation party:

Share all of your plans for the evening with your parents, giving them locations and phone numbers.

Stay with a group of friends throughout the night. Watch out for each other.

Make sure your cell phone is fully charged before leaving home for the night.

If you don't have a cell phone, take extra money with you in case you need to call for a cab or if an emergency arises.

Don't leave possessions or any of your beverages/food unattended.

Always wear your seatbelt.

DON'T drink or use drugs and drive or get in a vehicle with someone else who has.

But, we cannot just focus on the dangers of alcohol at graduation parties. Sadly, many graduating seniors die or get hurt in Florida car accidents without consuming an ounce of alcohol. Distractions while driving can result in serious automobile accidents. The biggest distraction is the text message or cell phone. If there is only one day for senior not to use their cell phones while driving, it should be graduation day. Also, friends in the car can distract the driver. Studies have shown that the risk of a teenager being involved in a car crash doubles when there are friends in the car. Loud music, conversations, Tom Foolery can all cause the driver to cause a collision. If you are a passenger in a car, do not distract the driver--it is that simple!

Congrats to all high school grads (especially Josh)!! Be safe so you too can enjoy your 30-year high school graduation like me this year!

Thursday, May 16, 2013

With high school prom and graduation going on, there will likely be many stories of high schoolers causing car accident because of distractions. This story is different.

Recently, 20 Florida teenagers from Western High School in Davie, Florida enjoying a limo ride to their prom put their special night aside to help. Their luxurious ride in their Cadillac Escalade limo came to a screeching stop, literally, as the van in front of their limo lost control and flipped on its side causing a one-car accident.

In their tuxedos and prom dresses, the kids jumped out of their limo and helped pull five adults and two children from the vehicle. According to reportson NBCNews.com, prom-goer Peter Kim told NBC Miami that he grabbed a young boy from the overturned van and helped calm the mother. “We laid her down, and we tried to calm her down. She was just panicking, she was in shock,” Kim said. “She was screaming out, ‘Where’s my baby? Where’s my baby?’”

After coming to the rescue, the students still made it to prom. Now, that's a night to remember!

The investigator officers were impressed with the students' willingness to help. “It was really amazing, because nowadays when people are so willing not to get involved they were ready to get involved,” Sgt. Wysocky said. “All the students and the limo driver should be commended for stopping.”

Great job to these students! This serves as a reminder that there is still good in the world!

Thursday, May 09, 2013

With all of the construction on U.S. 19 in Pinellas County, car accidents are going to happen. Drivers unfamiliar with the traffic patterns and construction delay often cause rear-end collisions. Another change in a very popular spot on U.S. Highway 19 may bring more unfamiliar drivers.

The intersection of U.S. 19 and Enterprise Road will never look the same. The traffic signal has been removed and a concrete barrier is now in the median of U.S. 19. Now, no one can turn left from Enterprise Road onto U.S. 19. Instead, drivers must now turn right onto U.S. 19 and make the U-turn at Countryside Blvd. to get to southbound U.S. 19. This presents new dangers for the intersections of U.S. Highway 19 and Enterprise because slower cars will be pulling out onto U.S. 19. In addition, the frontage road and Countryside Blvd will now be more dangerous as more cars will be using this intersection with the shoppers of Countryside Mall.

The old bumper sticker "Pray for Me, I Drive on U.S. 19" has renewed importance starting this week. Drive safely and watch out for those who don't!

Monday, May 06, 2013

Preparing for an auto accident jury trial starting week reminds me of two important things that we are required to "hide" from the jury. Yes, that's true--there are things that may be important to the case, but the jury is not allowed to know the facts about them. Two of these things are (1) Who got the ticket for the car accident; and (2) that the insurance company is paying for the attorney and responsible for the payment of any verdict that a jury returns.

The jury is not allowed to know that the at-fault person received a ticket for their actions that caused the car accident. Under Florida Statute 360.650(9), "citations shall not be admissible evidence in any trial, except when used as evidence of falsification, forgery, uttering, fraud, or perjury, or when used as physical evidence resulting from a forensic examination of the citation." Thus, if a person was cited for careless driving or running a red light and injured someone else, the injured party is not permitted to let the jury know that the defendant was cited for the automobile accident. The legal rationale for this is the courts are afraid that juries will rely too much on the opinion of the police officer in determining liability (fault) for the accident as opposed to reaching their own conclusion. Also, the police officer's conclusion is most times based on out-of-court statements from other persons and not based on his or her personal knowledge. Nevertheless, personally, I feel that the fact that a traffic ticket was issued after an investigation should not be hidden from the jury.

Secondly, the existence of automobile accident insurance cannot be shared with the jury. At a jury trial following a car accident, the lawyer for the Defendant is paid by the insurance company, the experts used by the defendant are paid by the insurance company, and any verdict rendered will likely be paid by the insurance company. However, the jury is not allowed to know any of this. Under Florida Statute §627.4136, juries are not to know about the availability of insurance that will protect the negligent defendant. The thinking behind this is that courts are fearful that the jury's determination of damages will be influenced by the availability of insurance. However, if the jury does not know about insurance, the jury may be sympathetic to the person who caused the car crash, for fear that the financial loss might cause them harm even though the insurance will pay the full judgment. Recently, one of my car accident jury trial resulted in a hung jury because one juror refused to award anything against "the poor man" who caused the accident even though he never would have to pay a penny because of insurance.

So, if you ever serve on a car accident jury, remember there are things that the courts have decided you should not know when deciding the case. Also, remember most times, the Plaintiff does not want to take the case to a jury trial, but the insurance companies refuse to settle the case for a reasonable amount because insurance companies know that juries are not allowed to know these things and could render a small verdict because they are not provided all the facts.